Serena Ransom – Stockton

April 2017

Sex offender who preyed on underage girls breached court order by using Facebook alias

A female sex attacker – locked up for engaging in sexual activity with two schoolgirls – has breached a court order by creating a Facebook account in another name.

Serena Marie Emily Ransom was 20 when she was placed on the sex offenders register, and given a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, for offences against the two underage girls.

The terms of the order stipulated that she must notify police if she was to use an alias, which is what landed her in court on Tuesday .

Ransom, now 22, appeared before Teesside Magistrates’ Court and admitted failing to comply with the notification requirements of the Sex Offender’s Register, in that she created the social media account using another surname, between January 9 and December 20 last year.

David Lee, prosecuting, said: “She’s a registered sex offender. One of the requirements of that is she notifies the police of any use of an alias.

“That is the breach of the order in this case. What she has failed to disclose is she has a Facebook account in a name of Serena Marie Smally Jnr.”

The court heard that when police visited Ransom in December, she did not disclose the Facebook account to them.

Ransom was convicted by a jury in 2015, after making sexual advances towards the girls, who cannot be named for legal reasons.

She was found guilty of one charge of sexual assault, one of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and two of sexual activity with a child.

Speaking at the time, Judge Peter Armstrong said the first and youngest victim was “particularly vulnerable” when Ransom sexually assaulted her by giving her lovebites.

She then gave the second, older girl lovebites, kissed her on the lips, and asked her to touch her intimately.

For those offences, Ransom was sentenced to 18 months’ detention in a young offenders’ institution.

She was also given the sexual harm prevention order banning her from work or unsupervised contact with under-16s, and was placed on the sex offenders’ register, each for 10 years.

The case was adjourned for a pre-sentence report by the Probation Service.

Ransom, of Hive Close, Stockton, will next appear before magistrates on April 25.

September 2017

Woman is jailed for inciting two schoolgirls to engage in sexual activity

A woman is behind bars for preying on two schoolgirls in what a judge said was a campaign of “persistence”.

Ransom had been charged with two counts of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, two counts of assault by penetration, sexual assault and two counts of sexual activity with a child.

But she was found guilty of four of those offences after a trial but still denies doing anything wrong, Judge Peter Armstrong heard.

The prosecution said: “She is and was sexually attracted to members of the female sex – nothing wrong with that but what she should not do is engage in sexual activity with people under 16 even if they consented.”

He called the first girl “vulnerable” and said she had suffered tragedy in her family. He said she had not consented to any of the sexual activity”

The first and youngest girl of the two girls who she made sexual advances towards was ‘particularly vulnerable’, when Ransom sexually assaulted her.

“She was simply too young for you to behave in that way,” Judge Armstrong told Ransom, of Bishopton Lane, Stockton.

The court heard how she told the girls to touch her intimately.

The girl’s grandmother said in a victim impact statement that she changed from “loving” to “isolated and withdrawn”.

She said the events left the youngster having trouble sleeping and frightened to leave the house without a family member.

Her school work was dramatically affected as she was unable to concentrate because of the court case

Ransom was convicted of sexual assault, inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and two charges of sexual activity with a child.

She was cleared on two other sexual assault counts and one count of inciting after a five-day trail last month.

She was sentenced to twelve months for the incitement charge and six months for the sexual assault charge to run consecutively and 6 months for each charge of sexual activity with a child, to run concurrently.

Ransom was also given a sexual harm prevention order banning her from unsupervised contact with under-16s, and she will be on the sex offender for 10-years.

Keith Simpson, Acting Head of the Crown Court Unit at CPS North East, said: “I would like to praise the bravery of the two young victims in this case. With their assistance, we have secured a significant prison sentence for Serena Ransom.

“I know that these events have been very distressing for both girls, but I sincerely hope that todays sentence brings a good measure of closure for them.”